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Ice storm disrupts communications in New England

CONCORD, N.H. (12/15/08)--An ice storm Friday that knocked out power to more than a million homes and businesses in New England and New York created some intermittent communications problems for some area credit unions. “We had weird electrical problems and problems with phone lines and the Internet,” said Rob Kimmett, senior vice president of public relations and marketing at the Massachusetts and New Hampshire Credit Union Leagues. “It was more of a nuisance, rather than any severe communications problems,” he told News Now. While it rained in metro Boston, the areas west and north of Central Massachusetts and New Hampshire got one to two inches of ice. The areas hit included Manchester, N.H., home of the nation’s oldest credit union; and Worcester, Mass. The governors of New Hampshire and Massachusetts declared emergencies. They predicted it might take several days to get power back to all customers. The storm toppled trees and power lines in those states, as well as Maine and Vermont.